The Role of Customer Participation in Creating e-Service Value (Track 1, Session 13)
Author(s) :
Kristina Heinonen (Hanken, Finland)
Abstract : Customer participation in service delivery has been argued to be growing. The recent technology developments have significantly impacted value creation as the role of the customer in creating service value is changing. Value is not something that is delivered to the consumer; rather it is produced in cooperation with the consumer. The aim of this paper is to explore the role of participation on customer perceptions of e-service value. The theoretical framework represents a four-dimensional model of e-service value based on technical, functional, temporal, and spatial value dimensions and it is suggested that e-service value is influenced by three factors (service, customer, and situation). An empirical study based on 3328 usable responses investigates consumers� perceptions of an online travel service. The four value dimensions were evaluated based on willingness to buy and perceptions of the difference between competing services. Self-reported level of use of the service represented the participation in the service process. The findings indicated differences in the perceptions of each value dimension and in the corresponding sub-dimensions depending on the level of customer participation. In general, active participation on the site increases the perceived value and hence it indicates that customer participation has a role in creating value to e-services. The paper contributes to service marketing research through its empirical findings on e-service value and customer participation. More specifically, previous e-service value research is extended by exploring how customer participation in the service influences perceptions of service value. The practical contribution includes an improved understanding of the challenges of customer participation for managing e-services.

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